1. Soils and Regolith

2. Pedology- The study of soils
Pedogenic processes depend on:
ClORPTH
Climate - Temperature, H2O, freezing
Organisms - Addition and digestion of Org. Material
Relief - Slope Steepness - Balance with erosion
Parent Material - what do you start with?
Time - How long has it been sitting there?
Humans - Addition of fertilizer, tillage, salinization, etc…
FLUX
SITE

3. The importance of soils
Life on Earth depends on soil
Soil is a vital non-renewable resource
It takes > 1000’s of years to form a soil
Chemical weathering happens in soils

4. Soil Degradation (erosion)

5. The Dust Bowl

6. Soil Horizons
E/A2

7. Soil Formation

8. Clay Formation in Soils
Primary
2:1
1:1
0:1

9. Some Soil Profiles
Oxisol
Alfisol
Aridisol

10. Soil Water

11. Climate and Organisms

12. Relief

14. Parent Material

15. Time

16. Naming Soils Soils are named on the basis of Subsurface horizons
Layers in the soil that reflect soil forming processes

17. Soil Orders Alfisols - Moderate temperature forests
Andisols - Soils on volcanic material
Aridisols - Soils from deserts
Entisols - Little soil formation
Gelisols - Soils in cold regions w/ permafrost
Histisols - Soils on peat
Inceptisols - Young soils
Mollisols - Grassland soils
Oxisols - Tropical forests
Spodosols - Cool, wet coniferous forests
Ultisols - Tropical and subtropical forests
Vertisols - Soils with cracks

18. Global Soil Distribution

19. Major Terrestrial Biomes